THE JEWISH POPULATION OF AUSTRALIA - Key findings from the 2011 Census Dr David Graham
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THE JEWISH POPULATION OF AUSTRALIA Key findings from the 2011 Census Dr David Graham
All rights reserved © JCA First published 2014 JCA 140-146 Darlinghurst Rd Darlinghurst NSW 2023 http://www.JCA.org.au ISBN: 978-0-9874195-7-6 This work is copyright. Apart for any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of it may be reproduced by any process without written permission from the publisher. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction rights should be directed to the publisher.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................................1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.....................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................4
What is a census and who is included?.........................................................................................4
Why does the census matter? .........................................................................................................5
Notes about the data ........................................................................................................................5
AUSTRALIA’S JEWISH POPULATION IN CONTEXT .................................................................6
Global Jewish context.......................................................................................................................6
National religious context ...............................................................................................................7
Historical context..............................................................................................................................9
GEOGRAPHY .....................................................................................................................................10
DEMOGRAPHY..................................................................................................................................12
Age and sex structure ....................................................................................................................13
Median age...................................................................................................................................15
Jewish births ................................................................................................................................15
JEWISH HOUSEHOLDS....................................................................................................................17
Family households......................................................................................................................18
Elderly households .....................................................................................................................18
Same-sex couple households.....................................................................................................18
INTERMARRIAGE .............................................................................................................................19
Children of intermarried couples .............................................................................................22
IMMIGRATION ..................................................................................................................................23
Place of birth....................................................................................................................................23
In-migration.....................................................................................................................................24
LANGUAGES......................................................................................................................................28
SOCIO-ECONOMICS.........................................................................................................................30
Education .........................................................................................................................................30
Qualifications ..................................................................................................................................31
Income ..............................................................................................................................................33
Household income......................................................................................................................33
Family income .............................................................................................................................33
Personal income ..........................................................................................................................34
Housing............................................................................................................................................35NON-COMMERCIAL ECONOMY..................................................................................................36
Volunteering....................................................................................................................................36
Domestic work ................................................................................................................................37
HEALTH, DISABILITY AND CARE ...............................................................................................38
Unpaid care provision................................................................................................................39
APPENDICES......................................................................................................................................40
Appendix 1: adjusted Jewish population counts by significant urban area, local
government area and postcode ....................................................................................................40
Appendix 2: census data adjustment...........................................................................................41
Unadjusted (enumerated) data .................................................................................................42ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report is the product of a collaborative research partnership between the JCA in Sydney and the Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisation at Monash University in Melbourne. In the past, analysis of census data has tended to be carried out on a state by state basis and whilst local analyses remain vital planning tools, and continue to be produced, this work marks a new direction in interstate cooperation. This report has benefited from the valuable comments and suggestions made during its drafting process by Peter Philippsohn OAM (President of the JCA), Amanda Goodman (Head of Communal Planning at the JCA), Mark Steiner (formerly Strategic Planning Coordinator at the JCA), and Dr Gary Eckstein for his independent expert advice. Guidance and support was also gratefully received from Professor Andrew Markus of the Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisation at Monash University throughout the process. Tanya Munz typeset the report and also provided welcome comments on the text. Dr David Graham was responsible for ordering the customised census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. We gratefully acknowledge JCA, Gandel Philanthropy and Jewish Care Victoria for their generous support in funding the Australia, New South Wales and Victoria reports. The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The census was held on 9th August 2011 and was carried out by the Australian Bureau of
Statistics (ABS). Here is a summary of the key findings.
Total Jewish population
• Australia’s total Jewish population in 2011 was estimated to be 112,000 people.
• Jews make up 0.5% of Australia’s total population.
• Between 2006 and 2011 the Jewish population grew by 6%, up from an estimated 105,600
Jews in 2006. Between 2001 and 2011 the Jewish population increased by an estimated
20%.
Geography
• The vast majority (95%) of Australia’s Jewish population live in its capital cities; 85% of
Jews live in either Melbourne or Sydney.
• Caulfield North in Melbourne is the most populous Jewish neighbourhood in Australia
with an estimated 10,200 Jewish people. Jews make up one third (31%) of Caulfield
North’s population.
Demography
• The median age of Jews is 42 years, older than the median for Australians in general (37
years). South Australia has the oldest Jewish median age (48 years); ACT and NT have
the youngest (37 years in each).
• An estimated 1,240 babies were born to Jewish parents in the year to census night, almost
exactly the same number as in the 2006 census (1,250 babies).
Jewish households
• There were 43,500 households in Australia in which at least one person was Jewish.
• There were 36,700 ‘Jewish households’1 in Australia; one third (33%) of these contain
dependent children. There were 2,650 Jewish lone parents.
• There were 20,600 Jewish married couple households and 2,100 Jewish de facto couple
households.
• The average Jewish household size was 2.5 persons compared with 2.6 in general.
• Compared with Australians generally, Jews are more likely to live in couple families
(61% v 56%) and more likely to live alone (28% v 23%).
• Of the estimated 10,200 Jewish people who live alone, 1,600 are aged 85 and above,
compared with 1,300 in 2006.
• An estimated 1,300 Jewish people live in nursing homes nationwide.
Intermarriage
• Over three quarters (77%) of Jews in Australia who live with their partner has a Jewish
partner. One in ten (9%) has a partner who reported No Religion and one in seven (14%)
has a partner who is not Jewish.
• Between 2001 and 2011 the number of Jews with a Jewish partner increased by 12%
whereas the number of Jews with a non-Jewish partner increased by twice this rate
(23%). The proportion of Jews with a partner reporting No Religion increased by 73%.
• A total of 11,000 Jews had a partner who was either not Jewish or had No Religion in
2011.
1
Defined as Jews living alone or with other Jews or with people who responded No Religion or Not Stated to the religion
question (see page 18).
2 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census• Married Jewish men are twice as likely to have a non-Jewish spouse as married Jewish
women. One in three Jews in their thirties has a spouse who is either not Jewish or has
No Religion.
• Jews in de facto partnerships are more than twice as likely to have a non-Jewish partner
as married Jews.
• Less than half (48%) of children with a non-Jewish father and Jewish mother are being
raised Jewish compared with 14% of those with a non-Jewish mother and Jewish father.
When both parents are Jewish the proportion is 98%.
Immigration
• A majority (51%) of Jewish Australians are native born, compared with 73% of
Australians in general.
• Between 2006 and 2011, an estimated 5,300 Jewish immigrants arrived in Australia—an
average of 1,060 per year.
• 11% of Jews in Australia were born in Eastern Europe; 14% were born in South Africa.
• The number of South Africa-born Jews was estimated to be 15,000; an increase of 10%
since 2006. The number of Israel-born Jews was estimated at 7,000; an increase of 25%
since 2006.
• Russian was the most common non-English language spoken in Jewish homes (10,000
speakers). But Hebrew is likely to become the most common non-English language
spoken in the future (9,550 speakers).
Education
• An estimated 8,800 Jewish children attend infant/primary schools, of which 60% attend
non-government (i.e. private) schools. An estimated 7,000 Jewish children attend
secondary schools, of which 76% attend non-government schools.
• The number of Jewish pupils in government-run primary schools increased by 27%
between 2006 and 2011.
• Jews in their 30s are more than twice as likely to hold a bachelor degree or higher level
qualification as Australians generally (67% v 33% respectively).
Income
• A third (33%) of Jewish families in Australia has a gross weekly income in excess of
$3,000, compared with 14% for families generally.
• 14.6% of Jewish families have low family incomes (below $800 per week /$42,000 per
year) which relates to 3,277 families. Lone parent families have the lowest incomes in
relative terms.
• Average Jewish personal income is just over $1,000 per week ($54,000 per year)
compared with $760 per week ($40,000 per year) for Australians generally.
• Jewish men in full time work have an average annual personal income of $90,600
compared with $72,600 for Jewish women in full time work.
Non-commercial work and need for assistance
• 28% of Jews volunteered in the 12 months prior to the 2011 census compared with 19% of
Australians generally.
• Jewish women were over four times more likely to do 15 or more hours of unpaid
domestic work per week than Jewish men.
• 6,200 Jewish people were in need of assistance with core activities. Over half (53%) of
those in need, or 3,300 people, were aged 80 and above.
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 3INTRODUCTION
The 2011 Census of Australia was conducted on 9th August 2011 by the Australian Bureau of
Statistics (ABS). This produced a rich dataset on Australia’s Jewish population, the key results of
which are presented here.
WHAT IS A CENSUS AND WHO IS INCLUDED?
Ever since the landing of the First Fleet, ‘musters’ were held to count the number of people in the
colony and over the years these evolved into formal censuses, the first of which was the New
South Wales census of 1828. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901 the first nation-wide
or ‘Commonwealth Census’ took place in 1911; thus, 2011 marks 100 years since the first national
census was taken.2
The 2011 Census of Population and Housing is a count of all persons who were present in
Australia on the night of 9th August 2011, and also includes information about their dwellings. It
is a legal requirement to complete a census form. According to ABS, “The 2011 Census was the
largest logistical peacetime operation ever undertaken in Australia, employing over 43,000 field
staff to ensure approximately 14.2 million forms were delivered to 9.8 million households.”3 In
2011, one third of all households submitted their forms online via eCensus.4
Census data on religion were collected for all household members with the question, What is this
person’s religion? and unlike other census questions, it was voluntary (Figure 1). ‘Judaism’ was
listed as one of four examples of write-in options for ‘Other’ religious groups but it was not
listed as one of the checkbox categories. No guidance was given as to how the wording of the
question ought to be interpreted; it made no direct reference to belief, institutional membership
or other types of religious affiliation. The religion question immediately followed questions on
language and ancestry.
Figure 1: The religion question as presented in the 2011 Census form (ABS)
Source: ABS 2011 Census, Household Form p6
(http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/2901.0Main%20Features802011/$FILE/2011%20Census%20Household
%20Form.pdf)
2
Wright B, 2011 A History of the Australian Census of Population and Housing, ABS, Catalogue no. 2071.0
(http://abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/2071.0July%202011?OpenDocument)
3
http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/what?opendocument&navpos=110
4
http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/factsheetsecensus?opendocument&navpos=450
4 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusWHY DOES THE CENSUS MATTER? The census offers a unique opportunity to obtain the broadest possible picture of the Jewish population in Australia. Its breadth is far greater than communal surveys can achieve and it is the only occasion comparative data at the local level is captured for all neighbourhoods across the country at the same time. The data it gathers are vital for communal organisations and agencies to help make informed decisions about resource allocation and planning for the future. Census data are used to inform decisions and policy making on a host of key areas such as education, welfare, aged care, security, representation and services for the young, elderly, infirm, geographically/socially isolated, disabled and so on. NOTES ABOUT THE DATA To obtain as much accuracy as possible from the census, two types of data are presented in this report. Enumerated data refer to ‘raw’ census counts and are used predominantly in the sections on Jewish households and intermarriage. By contrast, data relating to individuals have been adjusted to account for non-response and differing interpretations of ‘Jewish’—these are therefore estimates. The methodology and rationale behind this approach is described in Appendix 2. All references to ‘Rest of Australia’ (RoA) in this report refer to the total Australian population excluding the estimated Jewish population. All census data relating to individuals for 2006 and 2011 were accessed through ABS’s online data analysis tool TableBuilder Pro. Definitions of census categories are based on the 2011 Census Dictionary.5 Data on Jewish households and intermarriage were obtained from ABS in the form of specially customised tables and paid for jointly by JCA in Sydney and the Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisation at Monash University in Melbourne. 5 ABS 2011 Census Dictionary, Australia 2011 Australian Bureau of Statistics, ACT Cat. # 2901.0 http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/2901.0Main%20Features802011/$FILE/2011%20Census%20Dictionary% 2027102011.pdf The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 5
AUSTRALIA’S JEWISH POPULATION IN CONTEXT
GLOBAL JEWISH CONTEXT
There are approximately 13.5 million Jews in the world and Australia’s Jewish population
accounts for less than one percent of this total (0.8%) (Figure 2). The majority of world Jewry
lives in either Israel or the United States—only one in five Jews live outside of these two
countries (Figure 2). Australia has the ninth largest Jewish population in the world with an
estimated 112,000 Jewish people.
Figure 2: World Jewish population, 2010 (N=13,428,000)
Russia Argentina Germany
1.5% 1.4% 0.9% Australia
0.8%
United Kingdom
2.2%
Other
5.1%
Canada
2.8%
France Israel
3.6% 42.5%
United States
39.3%
Source:
DellaPergola
S,
2010
‘World
Jewish
Population,
2010’
The
Hebrew
University
of
Jerusalem.
Graph
adapted
from
Figure
2.
Largest
core
Jewish
populations,
2010
(p6)
To complete the full picture of Oceania, 6,858 people reported Jewish in the 2006 Census of New
Zealand6. Taking into account non-response alone, this can be adjusted to approximately 7,396.
The 2011 census was cancelled due to the Christchurch earthquake and was rescheduled for
March 2013.
6
Statistics New Zealand, 2006 Quickstats tables on Culture and identity
6 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusNATIONAL RELIGIOUS CONTEXT
Christianity continues to dominate Australia’s religious landscape despite contracting in relative
terms. In 2011, 13.1 million people reported being Christian compared with 1.5 million people
who reported a non-Christian religion (Figure 3).
Figure 3: The changing religious identity landscape of Australia, 1991-2011 (enumerated)*
22,000,000
20,000,000
18,000,000
16,000,000
14,000,000
Not stated
12,000,000
No religion
10,000,000
Other
8,000,000
Christianity
6,000,000
4,000,000
2,000,000
0
1991 1996 2001 2006 2011
*
Data
do
not
include
‘Supplementary
codes’
(2006,
2011)
and
‘Inadequately
described’
(1991,
1996,
2001).
Nevertheless, the religious makeup of the country has been changing in important ways and
Table 1 provides details of the changes that have occurred since 1991. Although the largest group
remains Christianity, accounting for 61.6% of the population in 2011, this proportion has been in
steady decline—by 13 percentage points since 1991 when three-quarters (74.2%) of the
population reported being Christian. By contrast, 22.5% of Australians described themselves as
having ‘No Religion’ in 2011, an increase of almost 10 percentage points since 1991. However, the
overall picture is one of increasing religious diversity with non-Christian denominations more
than tripling in number since 1991. The largest non-Christian religious group in 2011 was
Buddhism (2.5%) which has almost quadrupled its presence since 1991 (a result mostly of
migration from Asia).7 Islam is the second largest non-Christian denomination at 2.2% of the
national total, more than tripling its presence since 1991. In this context, Jews make up a tiny
proportion of the total (0.45%), a percentage which has changed little since 1991, and indeed,
since 1911 (see next section).
At the state and territory level, the picture is similar to the national level with Christianity
dominating but varying between 65% in NSW and 56% in Northern Territory. No Religion is
most prevalent in ACT (29.2%) and least prevalent in NSW (18.1%). Jews comprise almost 1% of
the Victorian population but only one tenth of 1% in Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and
Northern Territory.
7
57.0% of Buddhists in 2011 were born in Asia.
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 7Table 1: Proportionate size of religious groups in Australia, 1991-2011 (enumerated)
Census 1991 1996 2001 2006 2011
Christianity 74.2% 71.1% 69.3% 64.3% 61.6%
Buddhism 0.8% 1.1% 1.9% 2.1% 2.5%
Hinduism 0.3% 0.4% 0.5% 0.8% 1.3%
Islam 0.9% 1.1% 1.5% 1.7% 2.2%
Judaism 0.4% 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 0.5%
Other 0.2% 0.4% 0.5% 0.6% 0.8%
No religion 13.0% 16.7% 15.8% 18.8% 22.5%
Not stated 10.2% 8.8% 10.0% 11.3% 8.6%
Total* 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
N‡ 16,800,374 17,698,665 18,414,621 19,721,469 21,333,436
* Columns may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
‡ Data do not include ‘Supplementary codes’ (2006, 2011) and ‘Inadequately described’ (1991, 1996, 2001).
Sources: 1991 data page 21 Castles I, Census characteristics of Australia – 1991 census of population and housing, ABS (Cat.
#2710.0); 1996 data, Basic Community Profile Table B10 Religion by Sex; 2001 data, Online search facility
(http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/historicaldata2001?opendocument&navpos=280)
Table 2: Religious groups by state, 2011 (enumerated)
‡
Religion NSW VIC QLD WA SA TAS ACT NT Other
Christianity 65.0% 58.0% 64.8% 58.6% 57.8% 60.1% 55.7% 56.0% 19.8%
Buddhism 2.9% 3.2% 1.5% 2.1% 1.8% 0.7% 2.6% 1.8% 11.7%
Hinduism 1.7% 1.6% 0.7% 0.9% 0.9% 0.3% 1.7% 0.8% 0.2%
Islam 3.2% 2.9% 0.8% 1.8% 1.2% 0.3% 2.1% 0.8% 24.2%
Judaism 0.6% 0.9% 0.1% 0.3% 0.1% 0.1% 0.2% 0.1% 0.1%
Other 0.8% 0.9% 0.6% 0.7% 0.9% 0.4% 0.8% 1.9% 1.9%
No religion 18.1% 24.2% 22.2% 25.8% 28.3% 28.9% 29.2% 24.1% 11.8%
Not stated 7.8% 8.4% 9.2% 9.8% 9.0% 9.1% 7.6% 14.7% 30.2%
Total* 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
N 6,869,230 5,307,835 4,296,800 2,219,132 1,582,644 491,248 353,552 209,986 3,011
* Columns may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
‡ Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Jervis Bay Territory
8 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusHISTORICAL CONTEXT
Australia’s long history of census taking affords an opportunity to see how the Jewish
population has changed over time. Figure 4 shows that the enumerated Jewish population has,
on average, steadily increased from under 20,000 in 1911 to almost 100,000 in 2011. The
population has therefore increased nearly six-fold over the century, an average of 1.7% per year;
greater in fact than the annual average increase experienced in Australia generally (1.6%). Even
so, as a proportion of the total population, Jews have only ever represented about 0.5%.
Figure 4: The Jewish population of Australia, 1911-2011 (enumerated data)*
100,000 97,336
90,000 83,993
88,831
80,000 74,167
79,805
70,000 63,275
68,946
60,000
48,436 62,126
58,842
50,000
40,000
40,408
26,495
30,000
32,379
20,000
22,584
10,000 17,287
0
1911 1921 1933 1941 1951 1961 1971 1981 1991 2001 2011
* The 1976 census enumerated 53,442 Jews, however, this would suggest a substantial population decrease of 14% had occurred
in just five years without a clear cause. But the 1976 census encountered substantial difficulties including negative publicity
about the purpose of the census and the importance of privacy, the inclusion of new controversial questions such as income, as
well as underfunding from the government which lead to 50% sampling on less demographically important questions such as
religion (see Wright 2011 op cit pp13). Therefore, the reported figure is considered to be inaccurate so an average of the 1971
and 1981 Jewish counts has been included in the graph.
Source: ABS http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/historicaldata?opendocument&navpos=280
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 9GEOGRAPHY
The vast majority (94.8%) of Australia’s Jewish population lives in its capital cities. Indeed, the
population is so highly concentrated that 84.3% live in either Melbourne or Sydney. By
comparison, 38.9% of the national population lives in these two cities. Other minority religious
groups are also concentrated, though not quite to the same extent as the Jewish community; for
example, 74.1% of Muslims and 70.1% of Hindus live in just Sydney or Melbourne.
The total Jewish population of Australia in 2011 was estimated to be 112,003 which is an increase
of 6.0% on the 2006 estimate of 105,626 (Table 3). All states and territories, with the exception of
South Australia, experienced an increase in their Jewish populations between the two censuses.
Apart from Northern Territory, which has a very small population, the largest increase was in
Queensland where the Jewish population grew by 15.2%, albeit from a relatively modest base.
Table 3: Estimated Jewish population by state, 2011 and 2006
Jewish population % of total Jewish Jewish population % change
State
size 2011 population 2011* size 2006 2006-2011
Victoria 51,954 46.4% 48,881 6.3%
New South Wales 45,717 40.8% 43,658 4.7%
Western Australia 6,739 6.0% 6,295 7.1%
Queensland 5,110 4.6% 4,438 15.2%
South Australia 1,252 1.1% 1,256 -0.3%
ACT 776 0.7% 682 13.6%
Tasmania 285 0.3% 276 3.5%
Northern Territory 170 0.1% 140 21.4%
Australia total 112,003 100% 105,626 6.0%
* Column may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
Although Jews are highly urbanised, they do not all live in the state capitals and, as Figure 5
shows, there are relatively large concentrations of Jewish people in other urban areas, some of
which outnumber those in the smaller state capitals. For example, there are more Jews in Gold
Coast than in Adelaide.
Figure 5: Estimated Jewish population by significant urban areas
60,000
51,129
50,000
43,261
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000 6,395
2,513 1,618 1,132 807 410 341 229 163 162 153 120
0
Perth
Canberra
Darwin
Wollongong
Sunshine
Adelaide
Cairns
Central Coast
Newcastle
Sydney
Gold Coast
Hobart
Melbourne
Brisbane
Coast
10 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusThe most populous Jewish neighbourhood in Australia is Caulfield North in Melbourne with an
estimated 10,234 Jewish people (Table 4).8 This area alone accounts for almost 10% of all Jews in
Australia. Even so, it does not have a Jewish majority; less than a third (31%) of Caulfield North’s
population is Jewish (column 4 in Table).
Table 4: Largest Jewish neighbourhoods
% of Australia’s
% of
Jewish
Area name Jewish neighbour-
State population in Cumulative %
(ASGS - SA2*) population hood that is
neighbour-
Jewish
hood
Caulfield North VIC 10,234 31.0% 9.14% 9.1%
Caulfield South VIC 7,715 29.0% 6.89% 16.0%
Dover Heights NSW 5,228 30.4% 4.67% 20.7%
Double Bay - Bellevue Hill NSW 4,539 14.1% 4.05% 24.7%
Bondi Beach - North Bondi NSW 3,367 13.1% 3.01% 27.8%
Bentleigh East VIC 2,963 9.0% 2.65% 30.4%
Rose Bay - Vaucluse - Watsons Bay NSW 2,936 17.9% 2.62% 33.0%
St Ives NSW 2,665 11.1% 2.38% 35.4%
St Kilda East VIC 2,418 11.8% 2.16% 37.6%
Elsternwick VIC 2,150 14.8% 1.92% 39.5%
Bondi - Tamarama - Bronte NSW 2,069 9.1% 1.85% 41.3%
Bentleigh - McKinnon VIC 1,951 7.5% 1.74% 43.1%
Maroubra NSW 1,861 5.2% 1.66% 44.7%
Bondi Junction - Waverly NSW 1,853 9.2% 1.65% 46.4%
Randwick NSW 1,792 5.3% 1.60% 48.0%
Dianella WA 1,717 6.1% 1.53% 49.5%
Brighton East VIC 1,711 8.8% 1.53% 51.0%
* This refers to one of the analytical breakdowns that demographers use to examine population distribution in Australia. Each
SA2 unit contains a neighbourhood of up to 25,000 people of any religion.
Continental Australia covers an area of over 7.5 million square kilometres but the vast majority
of its territory is uninhabited. The total area of the neighbourhoods in which most Jews live is
generously estimated to comprise up to 2,000 square kilometres; under 0.3% of the country.
Map 1 shows the Jewish population distribution across the continent and highlights the
distribution in the main population centres. The high urban population concentration is
immediately apparent, especially within the major cities. In particular, Jews are concentrated in
specific areas of Sydney (especially the Eastern Suburbs and Upper North Shore), Melbourne
(South-eastern Suburbs) and Dianella in Perth. There are relatively few Jewish people elsewhere
in these cities and fewer still in the rest of the country.
8
Although various geographical breakdowns of the population can be used, such as LGA and postcode, for analytical reasons,
the Australian Statistical Geographical Standard (ASGS) is preferable. Appendix 1 shows more familiar breakdowns.
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 11Map 1: Jewish population distribution – Australia and main Jewish concentrations, 2011 12 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census
DEMOGRAPHY
AGE AND SEX STRUCTURE
Australia’s Jewish population has increased in size by an estimated 20.4% between 2001* and
2011. In the same period, the proportion of the population aged under 15 has increased slightly
(from 17.2% to 18.0%) as did the proportion aged 85 and above (from 3.2% to 4.2%). Figure 6
shows this increase of both the youngest and oldest groups in absolute terms as well as a
considerable increase in the numbers approaching retirement (55-64 years)—the size of this
group almost doubled in the decade.
Figure 6: Australia’s Jewish population by age, 2001-2011
85+ 2011
2006
75-84
2001*
65-74
55-64
45-54
35-44
25-34
15-24
0-14
0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000
* Data for 2001 are adjusted for religion Not Stated responses only. This method of adjustment is slightly different to that
described in Appendix 2 regarding 2006 and 2011 data.
The ‘population pyramid’ provides a summary view of the demographic profile of a population.
The overall shape of a pyramid indicates whether there are relatively high or relatively low
numbers of people in certain age groups. For example, Australia’s Jewish population pyramid
(Figure 7) shows a protrusion of people in their 50s and early 60s—these are (post WWII) ‘baby-
boomers’ who are now entering retirement. There is also a smaller protrusion of people in their
late 30s—this represents the ‘echo’ of the baby-boomer generation, i.e. the relative increase in
births which occurred when the baby-boomer group formed families. Indeed, Figure 7 also
shows that there is an ‘echo of an echo’ with a relatively large group under 5 years old, i.e. the
grandchildren of the baby-boomers.
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 13Figure 7: Age and sex structure for Australia’s Jewish population, 2011 (estimated)
100+ 10
95-99 Males
Females
90-94 502 829
85-89 1,168 1,837
80-84 1,440 2,038
75-79 1,537 1,846
70-74 1,995 2,261
65-69 2,833 2,933
60-64 4,395 4,567
55-59 4,058 4,101
50-54 3,540 4,010
45-49 3,147 3,367
40-44 3,339 3,598
35-39 3,710 3,910
30-34 3,178 3,432
25-29 2,982 3,180
20-24 2,872 3,125
15-19 2,977 2,776
10-14 3,214 3,098
5-9 3,535 3,249
0-4 3,619 3,435
5,000
4,500
4,000
3,500
3,000
2,500
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
4,000
4,500
5,000
Number of Jewish people
With the exception of the youngest cohorts, there are more women than men, especially from age
65 onwards. Nationally, there are 94 Jewish males for every 100 Jewish females. This varies by
state, for example, in Tasmania there are 81 males per 100 females and in Queensland there are
101 males per 100 females. And whilst there are 107 boys under 10 years old for every 100 girls;
there are 67 males for every 100 females for people aged in their 80s.
14 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusMedian age
The median age9 of Jews in Australia is 42 years, rather older than the median for Australians in
general which is 37 years. This highlights the relatively older age structure of the Jewish
population (Figure 8).
The median Jewish age has not changed since 2006. In 2011 the median age for Jewish males was
41 and for Jewish females it was 43 years. The state with the oldest Jewish median age is South
Australia (48 years), whereas Jews in ACT and NT exhibit the youngest median age (37 years for
both).
Figure 8: Age structure of Jewish population compared with Rest of Australia
100% 1.9%
4.2% 85+
12.1%
90% 15.1% 65-84
80% 18-64
70% 0-17
60%
62.8%
50% 59.4%
40%
30%
20%
10% 21.3% 23.2%
0%
Jewish (N=97,335) Rest of Australia (N=21,410,384)
Jewish births
Census data can be used as a proxy measure for the Jewish birth cohort since it gives data on the
number of babies aged under 1 reported as Jewish on the night of the census (9th August 2011).
An estimated total of 1,241 babies were reported, almost exactly the same as in the 2006 census
(1,246 babies).10 The numbers are shown by age, sex and state in Table 5.
There are several ways to measure fertility in a population, but the most common method is the
Crude Birth Rate (CBR). This measures the number of live births per 1,000 people. The Jewish
CBR in 2011 was 11.1, which is lower than the CBR for Australia as a whole (12.8) and slightly
lower than the Jewish CBR in 2006 (11.8) (Table 6). However, as the name suggests, the CBR has
its limitations not the least being its calculation includes the size of the male population, even
though men do not give birth. A more accurate measure is the General Fertility Rate (GFR), a
calculation of live births per 1,000 women aged 15-44. By this measure the Jewish population
actually has a very similar level of fertility to the rest of Australia; however, the Jewish GFR still
fell from its 2006 level.
9
The median is the age at which exactly half the population is older and half is younger.
10
It should be recognised that very young babies can be undercounted in census data due to non-inclusion on the census form.
It is also the case that religion non-response tends to be slightly higher for babies than for other cohorts.
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 15Table 5: Estimated Jewish births* by state and sex, 2011 and 2006
2011 2006
State
Male Female Total Male Female Total
Victoria 325 329 654 321 283 604
New South Wales 255 213 468 284 247 532
Western Australia 25 32 58 26 25 51
Queensland 16 14 30 20 15 36
All other states and territories 17 14 31 14 10 24
Total births 639 602 1,241 666 580 1,246
* Figures relate to numbers aged under 1 year in each census
Table 6: Measures of fertility, 2006 and 2011, Jewish population v Rest of Australia
Census year Jewish Rest of Australia
2011 11.1 12.8
Crude Birth Rate
2006 11.8 13.1
2011 62.0 61.9
General Fertility Rate
2006 64.2 62.2
16 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusJEWISH HOUSEHOLDS
There were 43,556 households in Australia in which at least one person was Jewish. However,
the definition of ‘Jewish household’ used in the following section does not include mixed-
religious households (which are examined in the next section)11. Consequently, 36,689 Jewish
households were enumerated in the 2011 census. Compared with the general population, Jews
are more likely to live in couple families (61.2% compared with 56.0%) and they are also more
likely to live alone (27.9% compared with 23.1%) (Figure 9). On the other hand, Jews are less
likely to live in one parent households (7.2% compared with 10.6%). There were 10,229 Jewish
people living alone and 2,645 one parent Jewish households.
Figure 9: Household type – Jewish households compared with all other Australian households
100% 3.7%
10.3%
90%
Other
27.9%
80% 23.1%
Lone person household
70%
7.2% One parent family
60% 10.6%
Couple family with no children
50%
27.9% Couple family with children
25.3%
40%
30%
20%
33.3% 30.7%
10%
0%
Jewish households Other households
The average Jewish household size was 2.5 compared with 2.6 in general. The average size of
Jewish households in Victoria was also 2.6; in NSW and WA it was 2.5.
Table 7: Jewish household type by location
Household type Melbourne Sydney Perth Brisbane Adelaide Other
Couple with children 34.8% 33.8% 33.1% 27.0% 24.0% 23.8%
Couple with no children 27.7% 27.7% 29.0% 29.5% 24.0% 28.4%
One parent family 7.1% 7.0% 6.7% 9.2% 10.6% 8.6%
Lone person household 26.7% 28.0% 27.5% 29.0% 37.8% 33.7%
Other 3.7% 3.4% 3.7% 5.4% 3.7% 5.5%
Total* 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
N (enumerated) 16,817 14,241 2,122 808 434 2,267
* Columns may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
11
In this section ‘Jewish household’ is defined as any household in which at least one person reported Jewish and all other
persons reported either Jewish, No Religion or did not respond to the religion question. In addition to these households were
6,867 couples in households where one partner was Jewish and the other partner was not Jewish. These are examined in the
next section along with those partnered to people of No Religion, an ambiguous category. In the present section data on ‘Jewish
households’ have not been adjusted for undercount, should this have occurred – see Appendix 2 for details.
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 17Only minor differences were observed in household type between the three largest
concentrations of Jews in Australia with the pattern for Melbourne, Sydney and Perth being very
similar (Table 7). But differences are notable outside these cities. Jewish households in Adelaide
are less likely to consist of family households with children and are more likely to consist of
single parent and lone person households.
Family households
There were 20,582 Jewish married couple families and 2,084 Jewish de facto couple families in
Australia. Jews are more likely to live as married couples than Australians generally (56.1%
compared with 47.9% respectively) but are less likely to live in de facto relationships (5.7%
compared with 9.3% respectively).
There were 12,186 Jewish families in Australia with dependent children12. The majority of these
(82.2%) lived in married couple families; a further 13.7% lived in lone parent families and 4.1%
lived in de facto couple families.
Children appear to be living in parental homes longer. In 2006 there were an estimated 2,262
adult children13 (aged 25 and above) living at home, compared with 2,604 in 2011.
Elderly households
Between 2006 and 2011 there was an increase in the number of elderly people living
independently. This is partly reflected in the number of elderly people living alone: an estimated
1,634 Jewish people aged 85 and above were living alone in 2011, compared with 1,317 in 2006. It
is also reflected in an increase in elderly couple households with an estimated 774 couple
households in which the reference person14 was Jewish and aged 85 and above in 2011 compared
with 604 such households in 2006.
Same-sex couple households
There were an estimated 508 Jewish people in same-sex couples in 2011, equivalent to 1% of all
Jews in couples. Since same- sex unions cannot currently be sanctioned by marriage in Australia,
these all refer to de facto couples. Half (258) of this group were Jewish females and half (250)
were Jewish males in same sex couples. Half (50%) of all Jewish people in same-sex couples are
in NSW compared with 35% in Victoria and 7% in Queensland.
12
A dependent child is a person who is either a child under 15 years of age, or a dependent student aged 15 to 24 years.
13
An ‘adult child’ is defined here as an ‘Other household member’ which includes any non-dependent natural, adopted or step
child/ren aged 24 and above.
14
The Reference Person is usually the person who has identified himself/herself as person one on the Household Census Form.
18 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusINTERMARRIAGE
Intermarriage data can be presented either in terms of partnered Jewish individuals or in terms
of couples in which at least one person is Jewish. Unless otherwise stated, figures in this report
are based on Jewish individuals.
Over three quarters (76.9%) of Jews in Australia who live with their partner has a Jewish partner.
One in ten (8.7%) has a partner who reported No Religion and one in seven (14.4%) has a partner
who is not Jewish.15 The majority (92.5%) of non-Jewish partners were Christian. Thus, almost a
quarter (23.1%) of all Jews living in a couple had a partner who did not report Jewish by religion
or by ancestry in the 2011 census. Measured in terms of couples, the equivalent proportion is
37.6%.16,17
Between 2001 and 2011 the proportion of Jews with a Jewish partner decreased from 80.3% to
76.9% while the proportion with a non-Jewish (or No Religion) partner increased from 19.7% to
23.1% (Table 8). (Measured in terms of couples, this latter increase was from 32.8% to 37.6%.)18
Nevertheless, whilst these figures do not appear to show a substantial change in intermarriage
over the decade, they are arguably misleading. For example, the data also indicate that between
2001 and 2011, the total number of Jews with a Jewish partner increased by 11.9% (final column in
Table 8). Yet, had ‘intermarriage rates’ really remained stable over the 2001-2011 period, then the
proportion with a non-Jewish partner should have increased at a similar rate; but it did not. On
the contrary, it increased at twice the rate (22.6%). In other words, mixed-partnerships are
increasing twice as fast as Jewish partnerships in Australia. Further, although less than one in ten
Jews has a partner of No Religion (8.7%), this group increased by a substantial 72.8% over the
decade, or at six times the rate Jewish to Jewish partnerships increased. By 2011, a total of 11,004
Jews had a partner who was either not Jewish or had No Religion, an increase of 37.6% since
2001.
Table 8: Religion of partner (married or de facto) for Jews living in a couple, 2001, 2006, 2011
Percentage change in
Religion of partner 2001 2006 2011 absolute terms 2001 to
2011
Jewish 80.3% 79.1% 76.9% 11.9%
No religion 5.9% 6.8% 8.7% 72.8%
Non-Jewish religion 13.8% 14.1% 14.4% 22.6%
Total 100% 100% 100% -
N (Jews living with a partner) 40,661 42,609 47,554 17.0%
No religion plus non-Jewish religion 19.7% 20.9% 23.1% 37.6%
These figures present the overall picture, however, intermarriage rates are sensitive to multiple
factors and certain subgroups exhibit higher levels than others. The key census variables that
impact on the propensity towards intermarriage are type of partnership, sex, age and location.19
The vast majority of Jews—over nine out of ten (91.2%)—are married with the remainder (8.8%)
being in de facto (or cohabiting) partnerships. Compared with married Jews, those Jews in de
15
This is based on 47,555 partnered Jews.
16
In terms of couples in which at least one partner is Jewish (29,279 couples), in 62.4% both partners are Jewish, in 14.1% one
partner is Jewish and one is No Religion and in 23.5% one partner is Jewish and one is not Jewish.
17
The census identified 958 Jewish people in a partnership who could not be ‘matched’ with their partner because one of them
was temporarily away from home on census night and these individuals are therefore not included in this analysis. Other
groups also not included are Jews in same-sex couples (due to very small counts) and 399 Jewish individuals whose partners
gave their religion as Not Stated and with no Jewish ancestry. However, 1,668 partnered individuals who reported their
religion as either No Religion or Not Stated, but also reported their ancestry as Jewish, are included.
18
Measured in terms of couples in which at least one partner is Jewish, the proportions in 2001 were 67.1% both partners
Jewish, 23.0% one partner not Jewish, and 9.8% one partner No Religion. In 2006, the proportions were 65.4% both partners
Jewish, 23.3% one partner not Jewish, and 11.3% one partner No Religion.
19
Jewish denomination is also a key determinate of intermarriage however the census does not capture this information.
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 19facto partnerships are more than twice as likely to have a partner with a non-Jewish religion
(32.7% versus 12.7% respectively) and four times as likely to have a partner with No Religion
(27.7% versus 7.0% respectively) (Table 9).
Table 9: Religion of partner for Jewish individuals by partnership type
Religion of partner Married De facto All partnered Jews
Jewish 80.3% 39.6% 76.9%
No religion 7.0% 27.7% 8.7%
Non-Jewish religion 12.7% 32.7% 14.4%
Total 100% 100% 100%
N (Jews living in couples) 43,486 4,069 47,555
Jewish married men are more likely to have a non-Jewish partner than Jewish women; 3,259
Jewish men in Australia have a non-Jewish spouse compared with 2,253 Jewish women. Jewish
men are almost twice as likely as Jewish women to have a non-Jewish spouse (14.7% compared
with 10.5% respectively) (Table 10).
Table 10: Religion of partner for married Jewish individuals by sex
Jewish male: Jewish female:
Religion of partner All married Jews
religion of wife religion of husband
Jewish 79.0% 81.7% 80.3%
No religion 6.3% 7.7% 7.0%
Non-Jewish religion 14.7% 10.5% 12.7%
Total* 100% 100% 100%
N (Married Jews) 22,116 21,370 43,486
* Columns may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
The relationship between age and intermarriage is complex. Jews who marry at a young age tend
to be more religious than those who marry later and are therefore more likely to marry Jews.20
However, it is also true that younger people are more likely to marry non-Jews than older
people.
Intermarriage rates are highest among people in their thirties and forties (Figure 10). One in five
Jews aged 35-39 has a non-Jewish spouse and one in three has a spouse who is either not Jewish
or reported No Religion in the 2011 census. The proportion declines steadily among older age
groups.
20
For example, GEN08 data show that 11% of Orthodox Jews aged under 30 are married compared with 7.3% of Traditional
Jews and 3% of Conservative/Progressive Jews. (Author’s calculations using original GEN08 dataset – see Markus, A., N.
Jacobs and T. Aronov, 2009, 2008-09 Jewish Population Survey Preliminary Findings: Melbourne and Sydney, Monash
University, Melbourne)
20 The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 CensusFigure 10: Married Jews by age of spouse where spouse did not report Jewish (N=8,558)
40% Spouse has No Religion
Spouse is not Jewish
35% Spouse is Not Jewish or has No Religion
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
15-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65-69 70-74 75-79 80-84 85+
These rates double for Jews living in de facto partnerships and the highest rates peak at a slightly
older ages. For example, almost two out of five (37.9%) Jews aged 40-44 have a non-Jewish
partner and a further 29.0% have a partner with No Religion (Figure 11). Thus, two out of three
(66.9%) Jews in their early forties and in de facto partnerships do not have partners who reported
Jewish in the 2011 census.
Figure 11: De facto Jews by age of partner where partner did not report Jewish (N=2,187)
Partner has No Religion
80% Partner is not Jewish
Partner is Not Jewish or has No Religion
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
15 - 24 25 - 29 30 - 34 35 - 39 40 - 44 45 - 49 50 - 54 55 - 59 60 - 64 65 - 69 70+
Geography is also closely related to intermarriage. Jews who live in locations with large Jewish
populations are more likely to be ‘inmarried’ than those in places with smaller Jewish
populations. Thus, in Victoria, the state with the largest Jewish population, 82.3% of Jews are
inmarried (measured in terms of couples this is 70.0%) (Table 11). By contrast, in Queensland,
ACT, Tasmania and Northern Territory, places with relatively small Jewish populations, half or
less of all married (registered or de facto) Jews have Jewish partners (Table 11).
The Jewish Population of Australia: Key Findings from the 2011 Census 21Table 11: Religion of partner for married (registered and de facto) Jews by location (enumerated)*
i) Calculations based on Jewish individuals
Tasmania
Western South and
Victoria NSW Queensland ACT
Australia Australia Northern
Territory
Jewish to Jewish 82.3% 77.3% 69.4% 45.2% 44.8% 43.5% 27.3%
Jewish to No Religion 7.5% 7.8% 10.3% 18.9% 24.5% 21.6% 36.1%
Jewish to non-Jewish 10.2% 14.9% 20.2% 35.9% 30.7% 35.0% 36.6%
Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
N 22,011 19,389 2,921 2,178 326 515 205
ii) Calculations based on couples in which at least one person is Jewish
Tasmania
Western South and
Victoria NSW Queensland ACT
Australia Australia Northern
Territory
Jewish to Jewish 70.0% 63.0% 53.2% 29.2% 28.9% 27.8% 15.8%
Jewish to No Religion 12.7% 12.7% 15.8% 24.4% 31.6% 27.5% 41.8%
Jewish to non-Jewish 17.3% 24.3% 31.0% 46.4% 39.5% 44.7% 42.4%
Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
N 12,950 11,897 1,907 1,686 253 403 177
* Columns may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
Children of intermarried couples
Of the 29,279 couples (married or de facto) in Australia in which at least one partner is Jewish,
42.1% had at least one dependent child.21 There are 5,463 dependent children in families in which
one parent is not Jewish and 2,805 dependent children in families in which one parent reported
No Religion.
Unsurprisingly, the chances of a child being brought up Jewish are highest when both parents
are Jewish. Using the religion of the youngest dependent child as a proxy for all children22 , 97.8%
identified as Jewish when both parents are Jewish. When parents are not both Jewish, the sex of
the Jewish parent becomes an important predictor of the child’s religion. When the child’s
mother is Jewish and the father is not Jewish, 48.3% of couples report the religion of their
children as Jewish (1,082 married couples). By contrast, when the father is Jewish and the mother
is not Jewish the proportion falls to 13.6% of couples who report their children as Jewish (1,497
married couples).
Table 12: Religion of youngest child by religion of parents
% Youngest child reported as Number of married
Religion of parents
Jewish* couples
Both mother and father Jewish 97.9% 8,175
Father No Religion 62.7% 739
Mother Jewish
Father Non-Jewish religion 48.3% 1,082
Mother No Religion 22.1% 547
Father Jewish
Mother Non-Jewish religion 13.6% 1,497
* By religion only
21
A dependent child is a child under 15 years of age, or a full-time student aged 15-24 years of age, in secondary or tertiary
education.
22
The assumption being that in the majority of cases, children in a single family will have been brought up with the same
religion.
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